In the summer of 1953, Canada experienced a devastating polio epidemic -- over 3,000 people were either killed, paralyzed or disabled. CBC producer Stephen Wadhams introduces listeners to one of the epidemic's victims: Peter Kavanaugh. For years, Kavanaugh pushed himself to overcome the legacy of weakness and disability with which polio left him. He must now face a new challenge, as his body is further attacked by post-polio syndrome, in which the muscles, joints, and sinews damaged by the original infection begin to wear out. Kavanaugh must deal with the specter of premature death in the future, as well as the more immediate adjustment he must make in his lifestyle. After striving for a lifetime to be "normal," he must now redefine himself as "disabled" in order to slow the progression of his condition.